Great Western Coffee Shop

Well - tomorrow we'll be onto our sixth prime minister since the formation of this forum

Tony Blair
Gordon Brown
David Cameron
Theresa May
Boris Johnson
Liz Truss

What do we expect to see from the latest PM? Would we do better in developing public transport if we had the same sort of longevity in political leaders as we've had here?

"How the .... am I going to win the next general election"

By ensuring everyone is monetarily better off than when Boris was elected. That is their only chance frankly, otherwise it will be for Starmer to lose, ratger than Truss to win.

But hopefully, a better Transport Sec than Shapps - Truss has said some good things about supporting Northern Powerhouse Rail & EWR. Sorry you said ‘expect’….then someone who has no concern for public transport.

I live in the Chippenham constituency.  We have an electorate of around 80,000. The new leader of the Conservative Party has just been elected on arouns 80,000 votes - remarkable in proportion; Chippenham is just one of 650 constituencies. Just over 35,000 members of the general public voted for her to become the MP for South West Norfolk last time around.  I was struck by here initial acceptance speech looking for to rally the Conservative party than the country; no great sign of a great stateman there, but it might be early days.

In my view, the system of appointment is far from ideal - but now that we have Ms Truss, lets make the best of a job.  I've not even said "of a good job" or "of a bad job" because I don't know.

There's so much to do ... perhaps Ms Truss's best role would be to appoint a good Transport Secretary, and bearing in mind that Public Transport is just a part of the remit, and a dedicated rail / bus minister who's given authority and allowed to to the job for years ahead.

She's NOT yet PM - that comes tomorrow, after BJ finally gets around to resigning & the Queen then appoints LT (or MEO'L) as PM. Hence only talking about the Tory Party & not the country.

And the actual appointment of the new PM by Her Majesty is to be done at Balmoral, unusually as HM is no longer in the best of health.

One might hope that both BJ & LT will share transport to/from Balmoral & not charge the public purse two lots of airfare etc.

Long experience as told me to take little notice of whatpoliticians say but form a judgement after seeing what they actually do

I am therefore reserving judgement at the moment

I do have  hunch though that the Conservaative party membership may have just increased Labour's chances of mwnning the next GE. But then, my hunches are often of as much value as politician's words...

One has heard for security purposes they will not be sharing.

Liz Truss was talking to looking after everywhere from Kyiv to Carlisle today in her acceptance speech.  Isn't Balmoral outside that?  Did she mean Kyiv to Kirkwall?

Oh, fair comment, one mustn't wish ill of those that serve us. (well, not *that* ill should the aircraft fail in flight)

No.  She's hedging her bets just in case Nicola Sturgeon gets her way...  ;D

So tomorrow will see the start of the shortest Premiership in British political history,with a bit of luck !...

Liz Truss is what you get when you order Margaret Thatcher on wish.com

Blimey. What did Labour order to get Corbyn?

I'm not a Truss fan, she appears to be out of her depth in a puddle, but I am willing to give her a chance, as I think everyone should have in a new job.

For the sake of the nation, good luck to her.

Thought they order through Ali-express  ;D

Fewer than 119 days? The ‘Shortest Serving PM’ was George Canning, who remained in power for just 119 days in 1827 before passing away aged of 57.

I share the lack of enthusiasm for Liz Truss and would have preferred Rishi Sunak. I smiled cynically at her "Deliver, deliver, deliver" speech, which is likely to be recalled by her opponents. But whoever is PM, of whatever political party, there would be no chance of them significantly diminishing any of the major problems facing the country, especially in the eyes of those who believe they are "entitled" to non-essentials

Two MP's touted for next Transport secretary are MP's for Chippenham, and for Saffron Walden.

Are either even interested in transport let alone informed?

OTC

The weather gods are giving an appropriate welcome to Downing St for Liz Truss. :P

Podium going back in doors... inauspicious start.

Whilst it's never been promoted as a dream of "Chippenham" to be Minister of Transport, she does have some useful transport overviews, an ability to listen and understand and ... yes ... I think she could very well do it and I would welcome her into the role.

Confirmed that Grant Shapps is no longer Transport Secretary.

Just got to make to 4 January 2023 to beat that, and she's only 47. I've managed older than that.

You know you're getting old when the Prime Minister is, for the first time, younger than you. Truss has 2 years on me.

Also, I'm more likely to need a truss.

She’s aged better  ;D

New transport Secretary named as Anne-Marie Trevelyan. MP for Berwick on Tweed about as far as you can get in England from our neck of the woods. I wonder if she has heard of Portishead..the town not the pop group. She is said to have a passion for singing....I wonder if she knows the words of Thomas the Tank Engine....

She has a few favourite numbers. She is an accountant by trade. I don't know if that's good or bad for the transport brief.

As ever, when there's a new minister in the transport department, I take a look at their web site:

https://www.teamtrevelyan.co.uk/campaigns/finish-dualling-a1


Stations - Berwick-upon-Tweed, Chathill, Alnmouth, Acklington and Widdrington.

There won't be any airfare. The two Dassault Envoy (yes, French) aircraft operated by 32 Squadron RAF were used.

I read that as 'a passion for signing'... got my hopes up for the Portishead DCO for a split second.

Luxury...

She's two years younger than my eldest son...

.............. and the HQ for GBR will be ................. some place North of Morpath  ;D

Rhere’s still a large cost to the taxpayer. Probably more than the public fare. But for the reason already accepted, I’m cool with it

From
https://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/25439/anne-marie_trevelyan/berwick-upon-tweed/votes
https://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/24941/elizabeth_truss/south_west_norfolk/votes

All old votes on transport, though the page is more up to date as it reflects votes in other areas from last year.

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/etvot.jpg)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/amtvot.jpg)

... and the Morpeth curve will finally be re-aligned for 125mph.

OTC

I have changed the subject on this thread to reflect the new PM and Transport Secretary - I chickened out of trying to split the thread into one for each of them!

From "Intelligent Transport"

Not a job I’d like to take on with the likelihood of presiding over ever reducing budgets, service cuts and industrial action.

According to this from globalrailwayreview (https://www.globalrailwayreview.com/news/137645/kevin-foster-appointed-as-new-uk-rail-minister/), Kevin Foster MP (Torbay) has been named as junior minister responsible for rail. However, DfT do not currently show allocated responsibilities for either him or the Rt Hon Lucy Frazer KC MP (the two ministers of state). Rail is not mentioned for any of the three Parliamentary Under Secretaries of State, either.

Confirmed on twitter to be Kevin Foster….appears Truss had a change of mind

And then there's the new chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, who has proffered a list of infrastructure projects in "The Growth Plan 2022"  (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-growth-plan-2022-documents/the-growth-plan-2022-html#annex-b-infrastructure-projects)(aka "if it looks like a budget ..."). These projects "will be accelerated as fast as possible, aiming to get the vast majority starting construction by the end of 2023". The longest part of the list is roads, but there are several rail projects and even the odd green one or two. The rail projects are:

As well as those, there are quite a few railly things in the list of Local Transport
 projects:

Even a few in the new Minister of State's neck of the woods, broadly speaking, despite evidently wanting to keep an appearance of levelling up alive. But not Portishead...

I'm not sure how railly these might be. 107 could turn out to be a park and ride near Bridgey McBridgeface, and 112 has long been one of the rounds in the party game called "What does Marvin mean by 'Mass Transit'?" Both could be (shudder) MetroBusty.

Another new face at DfT, Lucy Frazer. Quote from written answer "“As set out in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, we want public transport and walking and cycling to be the natural first choice for our daily journeys".
https://road.cc/content/news/minister-active-travel-1st-choice-daily-journeys-296261 (https://road.cc/content/news/minister-active-travel-1st-choice-daily-journeys-296261)
We will see if this survives the Chancellor's rigorous financial discipline.

Like the abolition of the 45% Tax rate you mean ;D

Walking is reassuringly cheap, and probably still within the nation's financial means.

"Walking services are subject to delay due to leaves on the footpaths"
"Walking cancelled due to extreme weather"
"Due to spending cuts, walking classes are no longer available"

To be clear, Thorpe Park, LEEDS -  https://thorpeparkleeds.com/connection/ . According to Wikipedia, Thorpe Park, SURREY has around 600,000 visitors a year, with a maximum capacity of 15,000. 

According to thetrainline
Thorpe Parks's own website tells us:
And  clicking on the timetable link for that gives

Truss gone ,Well that took long enough,who's next?..

I am reminded of the early WW2 cartoon of a group of German railway managers lined up and the caption was 'Last across the road becomes station master at Hamm'.  This was under a headline stating 'RAF bombs marshaling yards at Hamm again'.

... and for how long?

I have seen it written that our late monarch Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II spent more time in weekly 30 minute audiences with Prime Ministers over the years than Liz Truss spent as Prime Minister. Personally, I can't help but feel a tiny bit sorry for her, because it will be a blow to her confidence. But nobody forced her into it.

Is Kwasi the MP for Thorpe Park?
err, the Thorpe Park in Surrey between Staines and Chertsey?

I'll be honest. I've never liked the guy. He came out in favour of a third runway at Heathrow. It's my opinion that if he wants it that badly it should be built to the south of the existing airport. In his constituency!

So - Rishi Sunak is PM.  Will Anne-Marie Trevelyan remain at transport?  And the other ministers there?

This morning's BBC News speculated that Shapps would be back at DfT??

Shapps who is friend of the new PM probably did a deal "if you promise me I get my old job back I will get my flock of sheep errrrrrrrr MPs to vote for you"

Could this mean GBR back as a thing again?

The title of this thread has aged well

 ;D

This forum has aged well too.   When it was set up, Tony Blair was Prime Minister and there have been 6 since. Douglas Alexander was Secretary of State for Transport and there have been 9 since.  Alison Forster was MD/GEO of FGW which became GWR. Would anyone care to say how many there have been since, though I welcome the stability of both the current incumbent, and the recent gentleman who deputised for him while he had the task of sorting out SWR.

Rishi at the moment:

(https://i.ibb.co/Sx6RcQr/titanicdeckchairs.jpg)
(https://i.ibb.co/RTKrZtZ/RMS-Titanic-3.jpg)

Shapps gets the Moggster's old job. Business Sec.

Six days as Home Secretary. That's a record. Braverman, despite her security breach a week ago, gets her old job back.

Mark Harper FOD MP appointed Transport Sec. Cue Norchard as GBR HQ and HS3 hub. Can he please get his ex Chief whipping skills in operation on the Portishead line ?

Mark Harper:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Harper

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/11588/mark_harper/forest_of_dean

I know little of him, other than that the reforms he made to the process of making claims to Personal Independence Payment had the effect of speeding up decisions, and making it easier for disabled people to claim the benefit. I must admit to an expression of cynicism when I first heard about it, and was surprised at the favourable outcome. He was one of the ministers at my department from 2014. I think he also improved the shocking Work Capability Assessment process, but this was the last two years before I retired, and I was asleep most of the time.

Time to change the title of the thread, Mr Ellis ?

In the morning when I'm sober and awake

OK - I think I've managed it.  New title should be robust enough to stand further change.

Mark Harper is said to be Swindon born and bred and FoD MP so must know our area.

OTC

Expect to see a SSRB ...Second Severn Rail Bridge....to replace the first one...built as part as the government's Levelling Across agenda linking Sharpness and Lydney....before the Portishead line opens.... ???

Aren’t there already two Severn Bridges? There’s the one built in 1966, which is of course the second Severn Bridge, and then there’s the Second Severn Crossing or Prince of Wales Bridge which is the third. A new one would be the fourth, which could arguably lead to confusion: Fourth Severn Bridge, anyone?

 ??? Will Mr Harper continue Liz's dream of let's bash the rail unions or will this be seen as too "Thatcher" (coal miners) ??? Let's hope they can try to sort the dispute more reasonably in the same way as Barristers strike was resolved......

There are 106 bridges/viaducts over the Severn.

And I bet Chris Witts can name every single one of them!

Kevin Foster has been sacked as Transport Minister. No news on a replacement as yet.

So hot off the presses I haven't seen confirmation ... source?

His photo has gone from the DfT website - scroll down to bottom
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-transport

And
https://order-order.com/2022/10/26/ri-shuffle-day-2/

And the letter from the man himself

https://twitter.com/kevin_j_foster/status/1585307397383663616?s=61&t=1zDmSYZ14IcnbBfHe9-fqA
21.18 Lucy Frazer moves to Dept for levelling up, housing and communities

Terrible grammar, especially for one who "trained in the legal profession".

Jesse Norman now at DfT….but roads or rail?

Huw Merriman becomes Minister of State in Transport Department. This means chair of transport Select Committee is now vacant

https://twitter.com/parlyapp/status/1585731103142207489?s=61&t=xifFR-ZK-0ou3mv4Nzn7Mg

Always leave something open to interpretation. ;D

Decrypted, the letter says "I can't believe you fired me, but I'm not going to complain because that would ruin my chances of being a minister again. Please remember me in the next reshuffle. I would make a good Home Secretary should that become vacant in the next few days."

Announcement by DfT.
Huw Merriman get Rail and HS2

Scroll to bottom of link for roles
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-transport

Interesting comments from the Railfuture Campaigners Facebook Group this morning ...

"New Transport Minister. New Rail junior Minister. Actual announcements seem to be coming from Business Minister Grant Shapps for the moment."

"Shapps might be doing the comments on investment but with progress on the industrial dispute it looks like Huw Merriman has been getting involved. Good to finally see a Transport Minister who actually knows something about transport."

"Spot on. Hopefully we will see a lot less political posturing and a lot more engaging brain before opening mouth. In a few minutes I will be leaving to spend a morning community bulb planting along with two EMR train crew. Both lifelong rail enthusiasts and both no longer keen to volunteer for anything in the current anti Union rhetoric from this government. Who can blame them?"